Apparatus for burning fuel



A. DOBLE.

APPARATUS FOR BURNING FUEL.

APPLICATIQN FILED SEPT-23, 191s.

Patented May 18, 1920.

A. DOBLE.

APPARATUS FOR BURNING FUEL.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT.23,1916. 1 340 3 3 Patented May 18, 1920.

- r a SHEElS-SHEET 4.

i i I AAA A A. DOBLE.

APPARATUS FOR BURNING FUEL.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 23. 1916.

Patented May 18, 1920.

3 SHtE|SSHEET 3.

INVENTGI? flne r fioble UNITED, STATES ABNER DOBLE, or DETROIT, MICH GAN,

PATENT OFFICE.

ASSIGNOR BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO

DOBLE-DETROIT STEAM MOTORS 00., 0F DETROIT, MICHIGAN, .A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

APPARATUS r01?u BUR ING 'rUEL.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patnted lay 1S, 1920.

Application filed September 23, 1916. Serial No. 121,801.

generating plant of this type 'or classwhich will economically and- ,efficiently operate to generate or produce steam promptly in accordance with the varying demands therefor, which will accomplish the initial or starting generation of steam in the least period of time, and which in general over comes or eliminates the ob ect1ons in the various steam generating plants of this class tion will appear hereinafter.

which have heretofore been proposed, or are in use at the present time, my purpose being further to provide an improved apparatus of burning fuel economically and effectively, avoid back firing in the burners and confine or concentrate the'heat in'a manner to be most efliciently utilized for the generation of the steam. Other objects of my inven- The drawings illustrate a structure and arrangement of parts which embody my 1nvention and which effectively carry out my improved. method of'burning fuel.

In the drawing p t Figure 1 is, a diagrammatic view illus trating the. various parts as adapted more particularly for the propulsion of an automobile and thereb'yillustrating theirassociation and relative position in a vehicle of this class. v

Fig. 2 is an enlargedvertical section of the steam boiler a'ndthe burner and their associated parts.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section through the boiler and burner, but .taken at right angles to that shown inFig. 2, and

Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail section substantially on the line 4- 4; of Fig. 2.

In the drawings, I have illustrated portable steam generating plant designed more particularly for use automobiles and effect a condensing'operation.

scribed the condenser somewhat in detail because. as Wlll hereinafter appear, I utlllze like vehicles, but, of course, it will be ob-' v1ou s to one skilled in the art, after having obtained an understanding of my invention fromthe disclosures herein made, that the prlnclples and functions which characterizemy invention, may be embodied in and applied in other ways and in modified structures without departing from the scope and spirit of my invention, and I desire it to be so understood.

' The diagram in Fig. 1 is intended to illustratethe arrangement and association of the structural parts of a steam generating plant for automobiles or motor-propelled vehicles. In this system, and for this purpose, I use a steam condenser for the purpose of conserving the water supply, but where water' is plentiful and the conservation thereof is asecondary consideration, as for instance in the. case of motor boats and even stationaryplants, the condensing system may, if desired, be dispensed with. The condenser, which I have illustrated merely diagrammatically asA, may beof any suitable.

"type which will meet the particular requirements, but'I prefer to use a condenser constructed in the manner of the so-called honey-comb radiator or water cooler commonly used in motor-propelled vehicles of the internal combustion engine type. This condenser is preferably positioned at the front end of the vehicle because inthe explosion engine type of vehicle custom has placed it there. innumerable small intercommunicating passages A through which the water circulates, but through which in this case the exhaust steam from the engine circulates, this exhaust steam being conducted to the top of the condenser by the pipe A Innumerable openings A are provided around the steam passages for the cold outside air to pass and I have de some of the dissipated heat from the con-, denser to warm or heat the air for'the combustion mixture in the burner. The feed water pipe 1 leads from the lower end of the condenser to the reserve water tank 1 The boiler B is preferably positioned fust in the rear of the condenser and mounted on It has, as is well known,"

the frame, which is represented by the two channel beams 3, in any suitable manner, The boiler which I have shown is of rectangular form for the sake of compactness in construction, and to better utilize the restricted space on the frame of an automobile. It involves a shell or heat retaining chamber B the walls &of which are constructed of suitable insulating and refractory lining. This chamber, however, is divided into two compartments by a heat.

wall orpartition 13 which terminates short of the top to provide communication between the two compartments. Each com- "partment contains a group of vertically or substantially vertically-disposed water tubes 10. These tubes are in transverse parallel rows, but all of the tubes are spaced apart preferably a distance substantially equal to the diameter of the tubes so as 'toprovide space around ithe'tubes for the passage of heat and products of combustion. Each row of tubes has a common header 11 at its upper end, and afsimilar common header 12 at its lower end to which the ends of the tubes are fastened. The upper headers areof'la'rger diameter than the tubes, so that they will be in actual contact with each each compartment and at the same time be .evaporator and super-heater portions of the other and form in effect an upper wall for directly subject to theheat. The lower headers are, however, of such diameter that spaces are provided therebetween for the passage of the heat and products of combustion; The, group of tubes which are contained in the compartment. C constitutes the boiler, while that group within the compartment D constitutes the economizeror feed water heater portion of the boiler; hence these two' groups are independent in that sense. All of the upper headers of the evaporator andsuper-heater group are connected to a common steam manifold-13 which collects the steam therefrom and whicl'ris connected by a pipe 14 to the source of steam consumption, which in a plant for automobiles, is the engine (not shown), al

I. though, of course,a suitable control throttle should be interposed inf this steam line.

In like manner, the lower headers of this same group :are connected to a common water manifold 14'. which distributes. the' water to the, several lower headers, whereby the water will rise to the proper level uniformly in all of the evaporator tubes. Any suitable regulator for controllingthis water level may be used.- In like manner all of the upper headers of the tubes in the group D connect with a common manifold '15 and all of the lower headers to a common manifold 16, which latter manifold receives water from the feedwater line 1 anddis tributes it to the economizer tubes equally.

A suitable force pump 1 is provided in the water line 1 to inject-the water into the boiler against the boiler pressure. The up per manifold 15 of theeconomizer section delivers heated .or warmed water to the lower water manifold 14: of the evaporator section by means of suitable pipe-connections 15, The burner, which is positioned below the evaporator section or group of tubes, supplies heat to the compartment C,

converting the'watenin the lower portion oflthe tubes into steam which rises to the upper portion of said tubes and into the -headers where it is subjected to -the continued action of the heat, this process result.

ingin the drying and superheating of said steam: The heated products of combustion pass over the partition wall and-.downward ly through the compartment 1) where The water in these latter tubes thus becomes heated and rises through the upper/headers and manlfold 15, and from thence passes the' evaporator the economizer tubes are located.

into the water manifold of sectionof the boiler.

where they may, if desired, be discharged into the open air. through tlie-flue '17, or it The exhaust products of cgmbustion, after passing down through the compartment 1),:

desired may be utilized in any other suitable As before mentioned, 1 position the fuel U burner beneath the evaporator and superheater section .of the boiler in such manner that the heat maybe directly and most efficiently absorbed bysaid boiler. I provide a burner member which is highly refractory and capable of being renderedhighly in candescent by thecombustion of the fuel on its upper side, and I introduce the fuel on this upper side and in the. zone where the combustionftakes'place, the fuel being at the time of its introduction in a finely divided state, or 111 a vaporizedcondition, and properly mixed with air.

the refractory member or hearth -is given the form of a substantially square -bowl or,

' dish-shaped member E which is open at its In this construction J upper end and which embraces the "lower open portion of the boiler casing or inclosure up .to the partition wall which divides the two boiler compartments, the upper edge of the burner member being fitted to the boiler to prevent any egress of the heat or entrance of air from the exterior. The burner member or hearth while being generally square to conform to the boiler, has 1ts lower corners and angles rounded off or curved to form a generally rounded surface to direct the incoming fuel as will here-- inafter appear.

or hump 21 in the bottom of the refractory hearth, these parts being arranged so as to provide an annular slot or space 22 between the fuel pipe or member and the burner member, and ,being so. formed and proportioned that the finely divided or vapor fuel mixture is directed in a comparatively thin sheet or film so to speak on theinterior surface of the bottom wall portion of the refractory hearth where'it burns intensely on or in contact with or in proximity to this surface. If by chance any of the fuel in unconsumed or partially unconsumed con dition should reach the side walls of the burner the curvature of these walls deflects The curvature of this surface creates a whirling motion of the fuel and products of combustion within the said chamber.

The refractory hearth orburner quickly becomes highly incandescent and by reason of'its presence in the zone of or in proxim- -ity to the zone of combustion it acts catalytically to increase the completeness and intensity of combustion, and in order to utilize the catalytic agency or effect of the burner to the fullest extent I prefer that it, or at least its interior surface, be of a very porous or cellular nature whereby the effect of these pores or cells act to retard the move- ,ratus the parts are cold or comparatively so and the hearth or burner member has not of course become incandescent, hence with res ect to theinitial operation I pro- .vide pre iminary heat for the purpose of initiating combustion of the incoming fuel. In the structure shown this initial or starting heat is produced by means of an electric spark or preferably a coil of suitable wire rendered incandescent by an electric current. The wire coil 23 is mounted on the inner end of a removable plug 24, one terminal of which is grounded on the mecha-' nism and the other terminal at the outer end is, connected to-a suitable source of current 25 by means of the conductor 25",-this circuit being automatically controlled as will later appear. 'The starting coil is positioned just within the bell mouthof the delivery tube in the zone of the incoming fuel where the fuel-will be started or preliminarily ignited. Having thus initiated combustion, which of course is practically instantaneous, the. fuel will continue to burn on the inner surface of the hearth and in the combustion chamber and the refractory catalytic hearth gradually become incandescent and further builds up and sustains the process of combustion in its maximum.-

This building up processhowever is very rapid and is in practice actually a matter of only a few seconds. And this is true whether the fuel comes to the starter and burner in simply a finely divided atomized vert or at leastpartially convert the atomized fuel into vapor which being properly mixed with air, enters the combustion zone me condition to immediately enter into the process of combustion. For convenience of construction and accessibility I removably mount the igniter-plug in a ring 27 ofv metal which is'fitted withinia suitable opening in the humped central portion of the refrac: tory burner" member. formed integral with the delivery tube, being connected thereto by several smallweb portions 28 which do not interfere with the space for the passage of the fuel into the combustion chamber.

An air blowerH is connected to the delivery tube 20 which, as shown in the drawings, is turned horizontally and brought out at one side of the burner member just beneath the boiler. The outlet end 30 of this blower connects directly with the outer end of the fuel delivery tube. The horizontal portion 31 of the delivery tube, however, is contracted or reduced in diameter'at a point just inside the burner wall thus forming a venturi to increase the velocity of the air. At this contracted portion a fuel nozzle 32 is positioned whereby the structure forms an atomizer or pulverizer to finely divide the fuel and at the-same time mix orintermingle it with a proper proportion ofair.

This ring is cast or piston 36 movable therein responsive to v The liquid fuel nozzle extends through the fan or blower casing and connects with a suitable source of liquid fuel supply, a valve 33 being provided to regulate the flow of oil. The air intake pipe 34 of the blower. ex-

tends up and connects with afunnel or casing 35 which incloses a portion of the condenser cells as hereinbefore intimated; As a result the air taken in by the blower circulates around the condenser cells and ab-' sorbs the heat from the exhaust steam.

Now in order to govern the production or generation-of steam inaccordance with the varying demands upon a plant of this character, and to maintain the pressure substan tially uniform,- I provide automatic regulating mechanism which is arranged to be responsive to the pressure of the steam. On the side of the boiler or in any other suitable place I providea cylinder 36 having a the steam pressure of the boiler. This cylinder is connected to a pipe line leading from the lower or water manifold 14 of the boiler so as to get the correct boiler pressure without being subject to the varying steain temperatures. Opposing the movement of the piston is a coiled spring 37 in the cylinder. in response to the water pressure is arranged .to automatically govern the-operation of the burner. In this structure the intake pipe of the blower has a butterfly valve 39 which governs the quantity of air passing to the blower. The valve has an operating lever 40 which is connected by a pin and slot connection 41 to an arm 42 on the pis-' ton rod 43. As the pressure of steam increases in the boiler the pressure of the water, of course, correspondingly increasesfrom the source of current 25. and this circuit aswell asthe' igniter plug circuit is controlled by a pair of contacts 46 and 47,

.these contacts being inthe conductor 48 which is common to both the motor and plug circuits. The one contact 47 is stationary and is grounded on themechanism. The

other contact 46 is a pivoted arm which has an end portion 49 positioned in the path of movement of the end of the piston rod 43 at the lower end of the range of movement thereof, this pivot corresponding to a position of the butterfly valve where the air supply is so farcut off as to make an insufficient mixture 'Thus when the mixture The movement of the piston reaches this point the regulator automatically stops the blower and simultaneously opens the igniter plug circuit, the result being that the supply of fuel to the burner is cut off and combustion ceases. When the boiler pressure is relieved, however, the pisv ton moves upward in the cylinder and permits the contacts to make connection, start ing the blower and igniter plug and the combusti on of the fuel recommences, the igniter plugbeing again in operative condition to reignite the fuel in the event that the refractory burner cooled'down too much during the period of rest. Thus, the operation pf the boiler and burner is mutual and automatic and very'accurately responsive to variable and sudden demands on the mechanism. I also provide a suitable hand switch 50 positioned conveniently for the operator and by means of which he is given control of the mechanism. By closing the switch he starts the motor and the igniter plug'and from then on the regulation and control is automatic.

I claim:

1. In combination, a heat inclosure sl1e ll,-

a refractory fire-pot forminga bottom closure for said shell, a liquid-fuel atomizer for projecting a combustible mixture of ,finely divided fuel and air downward against the bottom of said fire-pot, and an electrical ignition device arranged to-initiate'combustion of said mixture. V

2. In combination, a fire-pot, a refractory shell completely covering said fire-pot, a fuel atomizer for projecting a finely divided fuel and air into said fire-pot, an electrical igniter for igniting the mixture, and areg ulator for automatically temperature within said shell.

3. In combination, a fire-pot forming a combustion chamber open at its top, a. fuel atomizer for projecting finely divided fuel mixture downward against the bottom of controlling the said fire-pot, an electric ignition device for 1 igniting said-fuel mixture, an inclosureembracing the open top of said fire-pot and in which the hot gases of combustionirise directly up-Wardlytherein. z 4. Thecombination of a refractory bowlshaped, imperforate fire-pot open at its top, a tubular memberprojecting into said firepot, a liquidfuel nozzle positioned-in said tubular member, a blower connected to said tubular member to finely divide the liquid fuel and project it into said fire-pot, and a refractory lined shell inclosing the top of said fire-pot having an outlet at its upper end fon the products'of combustion.

5. The combination of a refractory bowlshaped, imperforate fire-pot-open; at its top, a tubular member projecting into said .-firepot, a liquid fuelnozzle vpositioned in said tubular member, aiblower connected to said tubular member to finely divide the liquid fuel and project it into said-fire-pot, an elec- Signed by me at Chicago, Ills,. this 5th tric ignition device for initiating combusday of Sept, 1916.

tion of said fuel positioned beneath the inner end of said tubular member, and a refractory ABNER D OBLE' 5 lined shell inclosing the top of said fire-pot Vitnesses:

having an outlet at its upper end for. the AMY JEHLE,

products of combustion. E. H. CLEGG. 

